At its Aug. 10 meeting, the Texas State Staff Council approved to suspend its bylaw that previously held officer elections during the month of September. With the suspension of the bylaw, elections for the 2021-2022 year will now take place in August.
This decision allows both outgoing and incoming members of the council to participate in the vote, whereas, before the suspension, certain members were kept from voting due to the September time frame.
Five of the council’s seven officer positions were up for election, with all but the secretary position already filled. The council agreed to hold off on the fulfillment of the secretary position until its initial nominee, Judy Herrington, could be present to accept or decline the nomination.
The council also discussed various recognition and compensation methods for Texas State’s staff. This past summer, memberships to the Student Recreation Center were free for staff; the council discussed the possibility of continuing to keep passes free for staff next summer.
“Campus Recreation did provide free recreation center memberships to staff for summer 2021… We will try to reach out to our folks on the Campus Recreation Advisory Committee maybe to get a sense of exactly how utilized that program was. See if there’s any opportunities for an expansion of that, or what that could potentially look like,” a Staff Council member says.
Texas State Athletics will show appreciation for faculty and staff during its upcoming movie night on Aug. 19 at Bobcat Stadium. Staff members are allowed up to four guests each; food will be provided while attendees lay on the field to watch the film.
“Hopefully, we’ll see some familiar faces out there,” a Staff Council member says. “They have provided us some updates, of course with the upcoming football game, faculty-staff appreciation events and we’ll get email communications regarding how to secure tickets for those events whenever they come up.”
Steven Granados, a guest speaker from Chartwells, also discussed benefits and discounts staff members can receive from dining services on campus as well as plans of possible faculty/staff dining memberships.
“So what it is, it’s just like the meal plan designed for faculty and staff at a discounted rate … It’s $99 per month, you can pay via credit card, or also payroll deduction. It’s available for both Commons and Harris dining halls,” Granados says.
Granados also mentioned a new coffee subscription available for $29.95 a month, plus tax, which allows students to access all on-campus coffee shops including Starbucks, campus convenience stores and various campus cafes.
For more information on Texas State’s Staff Council visit its website.